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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. vault — a safe
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. craft — a skill
  5. rock — a stone
  6. land — ground
  7. land — a country
  8. land — to come down
  9. craft — boats
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. clip — a video
  12. clip — to cut
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. march — the month
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. march — music
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. march — the month
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. clip — for paper

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com